


don't give up now (there's already so much at stake)

by amilliontotwo



Category: The Last Ship (TV)
Genre: 5x09 Courage, Angst and Porn, Broken, Cheating (technically but not really), Episode Tag, Hand Jobs, M/M, Mentions of canon-typical violence, Stress Relief, no beta we die like men
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-01
Updated: 2020-08-01
Packaged: 2021-03-05 19:40:47
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,183
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25650760
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/amilliontotwo/pseuds/amilliontotwo
Summary: He is supposed to invade a hostile foreign country tomorrow, it’s not the time for him to havefeelings.
Relationships: (background) Danny Green/Kara Foster, Danny Green/Wolf Taylor
Comments: 6
Kudos: 7





	don't give up now (there's already so much at stake)

**Author's Note:**

> I just rewatched the whole show and I have FEELINGS. So much so that after 4 years of not writing ANYTHING, this happened.  
> First, how is there not more bromancy shit in this fandom? Second, why did they have to do Danny like that? Making him all hopeful and wanting to return to his family and then make him shoot a kid and lose Burk and THEN NOT DEALING WITH THE FALLOUT. 
> 
> Anyways, this is just self-indulgent bromancy stress relief porn because burning through 5 seasons of men in uniform while self-isolating made me have feelings.
> 
> Title from Atlas Falls by Shinedown.

It hurts so much – not the way his body aches from bruises, bullet wounds and other injuries; he no longer feels this kind of pain so acutely – but in a profound, soul-crushing way that speaks of all his failures and lost friends and it’s _too much_. It’s too much to think of the boy he killed thinking he was a Columbian soldier, too much to think about Burk – _Carlton_ , someone he has spent so many years fighting side by side with – slowly dying in his arms.

This morning seems so far away, when he was all hopeful and happy and planning his life with Kara and Frankie, smiling and being closer to his old self than he has been in years. It seems like a lifetime ago now, his life having shifted on its axis again in a matter of minutes, of seconds, really. He keeps flashing back to Burk’s body in his arms, the life draining out of him; the boy lifeless on the boat with eyes wide open.

Danny blinks against the images and it takes him a moment to realize his surroundings; he’s still outside on the James’ deck, the sea dark and quiet all around him, and he’s staring at his own hands. They are bloody and shaking and he balls them into fists before anyone sees. He is supposed to invade a hostile foreign country tomorrow, it’s not the time for him to have _feelings_.

He startles at the sounds of laughter and a movie playing from the helo bay, it’s foreign and out of place and it grates on his nerves in a way he knows it’s not supposed to; he knows it’s for morale and keeping everyone occupied on the eve of the biggest battles of their life. He still wishes it were quiet though, giving him enough reprieve to grieve and the respect that is deserved to the fallen soldier being carried inside in a black body bag.

‘Are you okay?’ Danny flinches at the sound of Kara’s voice behind him. He doesn’t turn to face her – he _can’t_ , not like this, with pain and grief all twisted up inside of him – and he takes just a moment before biting out, ‘Yes, Captain’.

He knows it’s a slap in the face to his wife – estranged as they may be – but it’s the only way to get her to back off. If he has to face her right now, see the compassion and pain for him in her doe eyes, he would break, he just knows it. Kara hovers behind him for another moment, unsure if she should push it, before she wordlessly steps away, thankfully leaving him out on the deck with nothing but darkness and his thoughts.

All that’s swirling in his mind right now is that he has to pack up another friend’s belongings, for the third time on his ship, the third time he lost someone from his team, all of them men who had his back time and time again - Benz, Cruz, Burk – all of them men he ultimately failed by not having theirs.

He sharply pushes away from the rail, taking the long way around to get inside, away from the crew in the helo bay and their laughter and carefree last night. All he wants is to be quiet, alone and get Burk’s blood off his hand and the smell of copper out of his nose. People move out of his way without question; they all seem to see something in his face that makes them shy away from approaching him and he’s thankful for it.

The head’s blissfully empty and Danny catches a glimpse of himself in the mirror – jaw set, eyes empty, _haunted_ – before he lowers his eyes and focuses on scrubbing his hands, the water running red in the stainless-steel sink.

He doesn’t stop the scrubbing, even when a hand settles on his hip. Danny doesn’t need to look up to know whose hand it is, he has spent enough time with Wolf to recognize his presence without having to hear the man utter a word. They know each other, a familiarity born from years of being stuck in the hellholes of this world together.

‘Danny.’

It’s just his name, no questions, no expectations, but it’s enough to break him just a little more inside. He shuts off the water, watches the last rivulets of pale pink water swirl down the drain. Wolf is silent behind him, his hand resting still on Danny’s hip and it’s reassuring and grounding in a way Danny can’t explain. He shudders out a breath, dropping his head and Wolf’s hand moves up his back to rest right between his shoulder blades, warm and heavy.

‘What do you need, Danny?’

A time machine is his first thought, but he doesn’t voice it. Instead he turns to face Wolf, who is so close already, who knows his pain and in some ways is just as broken as he is, and he lets their eyes meet for a moment. Danny needs to stop thinking, surrender to something else for a while and Wolf knows, yet he asks for permission anyways.

‘You know.’

Wolf keeps looking at him for a few beats, the only acknowledgement of Danny’s words a slight tick in his jaw, before he takes a few steps back to flip the lock on the door with a quiet ‘snick’.

‘Are you sure?’

It’s not that they haven’t done this before, but never on the ship, never with so many people so close by. It’s unnerving and exhilarating and deliciously distracting all at the same time.

‘Yeah.’ Danny’s answer is quiet but determined and it’s enough for Wolf to close the distance between them, stopping only when they are close enough to share the same breath. Danny lets himself enjoy the closeness for a second - no judgement, no pity, only understanding – before swaying slightly closer to close the remaining gap between them.

He doesn’t make it all the way though, a gasp escaping his parted lips when his head is roughly yanked back by the hand Wolf has sneaked into his hair, exposing his neck. Danny groans lowly at the sensation, reveling in the sting of his scalp and the sharp edge of Wolf’s teeth scraping up his neck and along his jawline and fuck, it’s too much and not enough at the same time yet still perfect to distract him from the thoughts screaming in his head.

The fingers at his hip are digging in hard enough to bruise and he welcomes the pain, physical pain he knows how to deal with, and he presses closer to Wolf, impossibly closer, and Wolf growls against his skin, the vibration sending a shiver down his spine. Wolf relaxes the grip on his hair just enough to angle Danny’s face so their lips can meet, a clash of lips and teeth that should be awkward and uncomfortable but instead just manages to ramp Danny’s arousal higher.

Danny’s not sure who moves first, it’s all a blur, and his hands are in Wolf’s hair, angling for a deeper kiss, Wolf’s hands shoving under his uniform, splaying over his abs, blunt nails lightly scratching the skin. Wolf pulls away from him eventually and Danny chases after him, only to be stopped by a hand to his chest, eliciting one of those high-pitched groans he will deny till his dying day and Wolf barely suppresses a smirk.

‘Off,’ he commands with a jerk of his chin and Danny scrambles to get his shirt off while Wolf busies himself with undoing Danny’s pants and pushing them down to mid-thigh. Danny’s breathing hard and he shouldn’t enjoy this so much but Wolf’s hands are rough against his skin, his breath hot against his neck, dick hard against his thigh and he wants so much to lose himself in the sensation just for a little while, he doesn’t care how desperate it makes him look right now. His brain is hazy, all fog and soft edges, his only focus the feel of calloused fingertips on his skin and Danny blinks when Wolf presses a palm to his chest, dark eyes expectantly on his. ‘Hm?’

‘Hand or mouth, Danny?’

Danny swallows dryly, heart beating rapidly under Wolf’s hand and he reaches his hands down to the edge of the sink to steady himself.

‘I- fuck.’ It’s so hard to focus on thinking; Danny tries, he _really_ tries, but his mouth is a desert and his dick is hard and he doesn’t want to think but Wolf doesn’t move, still expecting an answer.

‘Hand,’ he finally grits out. He doesn’t want Wolf on his knees, he needs hands on him to ground him and a body crowding him, the constant pressure against him to stop his brain from going places it shouldn’t. He bites his lip against the whine rising from his throat when Wolf finally – _fucking finally_ – curls his hand around his dick, callouses rough against the sensitive skin, and it’s bliss and Danny drops his head back. The friction is just this side of too much, perfect blend of pleasure and a little bit of pain and Danny’s groan echoes off the ceiling, unexpectedly loud in the enclosed space.

‘Hey.’ Wolf’s fingers dig in right beneath his jaw, thumb dangerously to his pulse point, bringing him back in close enough for their lips to meet and fuck, Danny’s grateful for it when Wolf strokes him a couple of times, long, hard, fingers unrelenting on his dick. Wolf swallows his moans, thumb stroking lightly against his throat vibrating with the sounds, the movement slow and deliberate, in perfect contrast to the harsh rhythm of his other hand.

They’re not even kissing, Danny’s breathing harsh against Wolf’s lips, chest heaving with the effort to keep it together. Wolf’s knuckles brush his abs on the next upstroke, and he forgets to breath altogether for a moment, the tease right against the tip of his dick, Wolf’s thumb going in tight circles, pushing him closer to the edge. Danny exhales sharply, eyes fluttering shut at the sensation of Wolf’s grip on him tightening just the tiniest fraction more and he’s so close, he can almost taste it.

‘Eyes on me, Danny.’ It sends shiver up his spine; Wolf’s voice is low and raspy in his ear, his left hand still resting lightly beneath his jawline, and Danny has to force his eyes open to meet Wolf’s. They are so impossibly dark and Danny’s not sure he ever got a definite read on what was going on behind them. His whole body is straining with the effort to keep himself upright when Wolf redoubles his efforts, all the while holding his gaze. ‘Fuck- _nghh_.’

He comes on the next stroke, on his own chest and all over Wolf’s fingers, and he blisses out for a second, head empty, teeth almost going through his bottom lip in an attempt to stifle his own noises. He allows himself a couple of breaths to calm down and Wolf just keeps watching him, moving his left hand to rest at the side of his neck now, soft, without pressure.

Danny shudders out a breath, and he’s suddenly feeling _exhausted_ , the weight of the day and the next day rushing back in his mind and Wolf is still looking at him with unreadable eyes and Danny knows he should probably at least reciprocate the favor and help Wolf out but he can’t bring himself to move.

‘You’re gonna be okay, Danny.’

Danny knows it’s just empty words but he still leans closer, rests his forehead on Wolf’s shoulder with a soft sigh and let’s himself get lost in the warmth of Wolf’s body and the reassuring weight of Wolf’s hand at the back of his neck.

‘Just one more day, right?’

‘Yeah mate, just one more day.’

Danny eventually pushes upright again, and Wolf steps aside to allow him more space. Danny looks at himself in the mirror – disheveled, flushed, _a mess_ – before reaching for a paper towel to clean himself up, Wolf washing his hands beside him.

Danny pulls his pants back up and his eyes meet Wolf’s in the mirror as he comes back up from picking up his shirt.

‘Thanks Wolf.’

Wolf just smiles softly as he turns to unlock the door.

‘Just try to get some sleep, Danny. You know where to find me if your head gets too loud.’

Danny wants to say more but the words don’t form right and so he just nods as Wolf leaves him and he takes a deep breath before putting his uniform back on, his spine straightening, jaw setting. His head is still buzzing but it’s softer now, the weight not as crushing. He knows it won’t last and come back later with a vengeance that would make him wish he didn’t make it out of Columbia tomorrow.

But for now, it’s just one more night and one more day to get through and then he can try to fix his life.

If there’s anything left to fix.


End file.
